# Cooking Cigars in the Microwave Oven



## Pyro (Nov 10, 2006)

I just wanted to share a little information regarding a small experiment I did on treating cigars with microwaves as an alternative method to deep freezing them to get rid of the Tobacco Beetle. The reason for this was a discussion at a Swedish cigar forum where people wondered if the cigars could survive such treatment and if they even could benefit from it (as a forced storage process to speed up maturation).

This has been mentioned but not really discussed before. Although I have seen that Club Stogie member kansashat several times has posted that some vendor recommended him to microwave cigars to "pop" the eggs. The background to this might be an article from European Cigar Cult Journal, autumn 2001, where some experiments and results were presented. See the text from the article at http://www.clubstogie.com/vb/showpost.php?p=8394&postcount=12

So, just for fun I did a small scale experiment just to see if the taste would be altered after heating some cigars in the microwave oven. The conclusion was that I couldn't detect any significant change in the flavour profile that couldn't be connected to variations in the cigars themselves. But, I would never use this method myself and would not recommend it to anyone since there must be a risk of loosing volatile compounds, which could affect the taste and aroma in a negative way. Especially if the cigars are to be stored for long time maturation!

See some pictures at:
http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2090108079


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## yourchoice (Jun 25, 2006)

With a name like Pyro, it doesn't surprise me you would try for high heat over freezing cold. 

Not something I would do, but thanks for sharing.


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## Teninx (Apr 23, 2006)

Dem dam microwaves be makin' ya sterile. Ahy's gonna put mah stogies in de 
'lectric oven.


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## texasbadbob (May 18, 2007)

Thanks for sharing. I will stick to the freezer. Just used dry ice to freeze my entire stash. Worked fine


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## White97Jimmy (May 12, 2006)

There was someone here who used a microwave for "fast aging" and failed miserably!


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## Syekick (Jun 5, 2007)

Try it with a convection oven:

1. Preheat convection oven to 325 on high fan speed (roast)
2. Liberally spread crunchy peanut butter over a cookie sheet.
3. Lay the cigars out evenly spaced with about a thumbs width between each. 
4. Top with 1/2 cup pecans and 1/2 cup walnuts.
5. Pour 1 cup of melted butter over the top. (Butter not margarine) 
6. Liberally sprinkle cinnamon sugar over all.
7. Open fresh bottle of single malt scotch.
8. Set timer for two hours
9. Take a fresh cigar and the scotch to your smoking area.
10. Complete drinking the entire bottle of scotch.
11. Turn off the oven and go to bed.

Note: If the smoke alarm goes off before you finish the scotch, you are drinking too slow.


Make 0 servings of 0 Calories. 

Enjoy

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Otherwise, maybe the microwave idea does have its merits! But the scotch is more fun!!


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## tzaddi (Feb 24, 2007)

I really appreciate the effort and scientific method you put into the evaluation. You would definitely get a Blue Ribbon at my Science Fair.

Never lit and smoked 2 at a time, will have to try it sometime...in the name of science

Thanks for sharing:tu


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## Teninx (Apr 23, 2006)

First I'm going to sterilize all my cigars with Ethylene Oxide. After that I'll cook them in the microwave and then I'll freeze them.


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## DamnU (May 31, 2007)

I prefer grilling mine on the BBQ so it gets those little lines across it like a Ball Park frank. Then I stick it in a bun and smoke it that way. See?


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## pizzaboy089 (Jul 8, 2007)

Wouldn't the cigar taste like microwave food?


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## DamnU (May 31, 2007)

^^ Pizza flavored cigars?! I think you're on to something!!


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## tuneman07 (May 27, 2007)

Interesting theory on the microwave, I wonder if just a second or two would kill the eggs, I mean microwaves aren't too nice to life forms  that short of a time wouldn't necessarily heat up the tobacco much either.


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## hova45 (Jun 17, 2007)

nice exploding cigars


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## Teninx (Apr 23, 2006)

tuneman07 said:


> Interesting theory on the microwave, I wonder if just a second or two would kill the eggs, I mean microwaves aren't too nice to life forms  that short of a time wouldn't necessarily heat up the tobacco much either.


Microwaves do not penetrate far into the objects they strike. They produce heat by exciting the molecules. If the cigar gets hot enough to kill the eggs, it most likely will get hot enough to kill the cigar.


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## Pyro (Nov 10, 2006)

Teninx said:


> ...If the cigar gets hot enough to kill the eggs, it most likely will get hot enough to kill the cigar.


 Well, that was what I would guess too but even the Vegueros Marevas that was cooked at maximum effect for 20 seconds and really boiled actually tasted completely normal after the stabilisation!


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## Teninx (Apr 23, 2006)

A cigar is appx. 14% moisture. Boiling that moisture out of it will produce a change in the cigar.


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## BigVito (Jan 1, 2000)

Teninx said:


> A cigar is appx. 14% moisture. Boiling that moisture out of it will produce a change in the cigar.


give it a shot and post it up.


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## Pyro (Nov 10, 2006)

Reply to Teninx;
Of course, but that is not what I did! If you check my link and read the text below the pictures it explains that the cigars were treated inside plastic bags and that they were left in their bags over night. Then they were stabilized at 65 % RH for ten days before I started to evaluate any differences in taste!

The loss of moisture is not the problem since you easily can rehydrate the cigars. The problem is the potential loss of volatile and aromatic substances that will be lost forever!


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## Smokey Bob (Dec 26, 2006)

It just sounds barbaric to me.

I'd rather throw a poodle in the microwave than my cigars and I love dogs more than people. Hmmm except that if it killed worms and fleas....

Robert:ss


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## Teninx (Apr 23, 2006)

Pyro said:


> Reply to Teninx;
> Of course, but that is not what I did! If you check my link and read the text below the pictures it explains that the cigars were treated inside plastic bags and that they were left in their bags over night. Then they were stabilized at 65 % RH for ten days before I started to evaluate any differences in taste!
> 
> The loss of moisture is not the problem since you easily can rehydrate the cigars. The problem is the potential loss of volatile and aromatic substances that will be lost forever!


C'mon. If you think that a cigar can be microwaved for twenty seconds AND ACTUALLY BOIL THE MOISURE OUT, as you stated, without bad effect, you're not smoking any type of cigar I've ever seen. Putting them in a baggie and leaving them alone overnight won't help.


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## Teninx (Apr 23, 2006)

BigVito said:


> give it a shot and post it up.


Send me your cigars and I'll be glad to try.


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## BigVito (Jan 1, 2000)

Teninx said:


> Send me your cigars and I'll be glad to try.


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## Pyro (Nov 10, 2006)

Teninx said:


> C'mon. If you think that a cigar can be microwaved for twenty seconds AND ACTUALLY BOIL THE MOISURE OUT, as you stated, without bad effect, you're not smoking any type of cigar I've ever seen. Putting them in a baggie and leaving them alone overnight won't help.


 It appears to me that you still haven't followed my link and studied the pictures, nor the explaining text! I also don't like your tone since you practically imply that I'm lying!  Why would I do that?

Just because something is heated until steam is generated vigorously, it doesn't mean all water actually leaves the substrate, or the cigar in this case, at once. What I tried to explain was that the cigar was definitely heated enough to kill beetles, larvae and eggs and even though the wrapper looked very wrinkly afterwards, I could not detect a significant change in flavour between a cooked and untreated cigar!


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## SmokeyJoe (Oct 3, 2006)

yourchoice said:


> With a name like Pyro, it doesn't surprise me you would try for high heat over freezing cold.
> 
> Not something I would do, but thanks for sharing.


:r :tpd:

Interesting... I had not run into this discussion before. So how do cooked tobacco beetle eggs taste? Kind of like Tobacco Beetle Caviar... :ss


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## tuneman07 (May 27, 2007)

If you have to heat the cigar up to kill the beatles I would say that would be bad for the cigar, I was under the impression that the theory is it is the microwaves that kills the beatles not the heat.


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## Pyro (Nov 10, 2006)

tuneman07 said:


> If you have to heat the cigar up to kill the beatles I would say that would be bad for the cigar...


 I agree!



tuneman07 said:


> ...I was under the impression that the theory is it is the microwaves that kills the beatles not the heat.


 The function of the microwave is to primarily heat up water molecules. This raises the temperature inside whatever living thing you introduce into the oven and when the proteins in the poor critter start to denaturate (being destroyed) from the high temperature, death follows quickly!


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## Silound (May 22, 2007)

Just to see tonight, I'm going to nuke a Rocky Patel Edge Toro Maduro (one of the oiliest cigars I have) for 5, 10, and 15 minutes.


I will post pics when I can.


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## Teninx (Apr 23, 2006)

Pyro said:


> It appears to me that you still haven't followed my link and studied the pictures, nor the explaining text! I also don't like your tone since you practically imply that I'm lying!  Why would I do that?
> 
> Just because something is heated until steam is generated vigorously, it doesn't mean all water actually leaves the substrate, or the cigar in this case, at once. What I tried to explain was that the cigar was definitely heated enough to kill beetles, larvae and eggs and even though the wrapper looked very wrinkly afterwards, I could not detect a significant change in flavour between a cooked and untreated cigar!


I don't think you're lying. I think you're flat-out wrong. And my tone expresses frustration. Exposing a cigar to microwaves is a bad practice.


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## Pyro (Nov 10, 2006)

Teninx said:


> I don't think you're lying. I think you're flat-out wrong. And my tone expresses frustration. Exposing a cigar to microwaves is a bad practice.


 I totally agree with you that exposing cigars to microwaves is bad practice. This was only an experiment! How can you say that I'm flat-out wrong when it comes to what I personally experienced flavour wise?


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## Teninx (Apr 23, 2006)

We are not going to come to any agreement on this issue...which is OK. We're both secure in what we believe and further argument won't change things. Thanks for sticking to your guns; it makes for interesting reading. As they once said in the newsroom: -30-


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## kansashat (Mar 13, 2004)

Let's not let this get outa hand here gents.

teninx: Dismissing this process out of hand because you believe it is "bad practice" without any sources of information isn't exactly a sound way of refuting something. 

Also, please note that pyro stated that the cigars were allowed to re-acclimate for 10 days, not 1 day as you stated.

pyro: No need to get defensive........we're all friends here . Most of us understand that you are just bringing up an interesting line of thought, not trying to validate the method.

I will go read the link myself......interesting topic!


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## Sawyer (Jul 11, 2007)

I have heard of people trying this before. I would not do it to my own cigars though.


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## tuneman07 (May 27, 2007)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microwave_oven

This is an interesting article on the microwave and how it works. It appears that the "radiation" is not the dangerous kind that causes cancer like X rays and Gamma rays and such so it is only the heating which would cause death for the beatle eggs and not the rays. The thing is though water is the thing that heats up the most in the microwave so if the beatle eggs are largely made up of water they would probably heat up before the cigar so this could kill them without doing much to the cigar. Unfortunately the microwaves don't necessarily penetrate that far into things so it would be tough to know if you got all the eggs or not. Sounds like we need to proposition mythbusters for this one as it sounds somewhat likely that a microwave could work for this purpose.


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